Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to rock crushers and tumblers. More specifically, the present invention relates to a rock crushing apparatus and a method of pulverizing rocks into fine powder for subsequent sluicing.
Many rocks and ore contain fine particles of precious metals and other coveted minerals. However, these rocks generally need to be broken down or pulverized into smaller, more granular particles in order to separate the desired elements from the undesired earth or rock. This process was traditionally done by hand using a hammer or pickaxe, whereafter the rocks are broken down into the smaller sizes using impact tools as a means. Once the rock has been pulverized or broken down (either by hand or by alternate means), the process of sluicing is engaged to draw the desired minerals from the rock powder.
Rock crushing assemblies exist in the art and range in complexity and effectiveness. One drawback to most systems is that they require a user to remain present to supervise the crushing process, which is an unnecessarily frivolous task that takes time away from other, more productive activities. Furthermore rocks placed in some modern crushers must go through stages, or even run through a system multiple times before they produce particles of the desired size. The present invention is designed to address these drawbacks while maintaining a simple construction that can be easily maintained and refurbished after a period of use.
Specifically, the present invention provides a rock crushing assembly and method of pulverizing rocks that includes a powered tumbler and a pulverizing media therein. The tumbler is a rotary crushing assembly that rotates and includes faceted outer surfaces. A drivetrain rotates the tumbler at a given rotational velocity, which slings rocks toward the outer surfaces of the tumbler. Within the tumbler, the rocks are joined with a quantity of pulverizing media, which comprises a plurality of hardened spheres or pellets that have a higher hardness and stiffness than the rock being pulverized. The pulverizing media impacts the rocks as they rotate within the tumbler. Over a period of operation, the rocks are completely pulverized into a fine powder for subsequent extraction and further processing for precious minerals. To prevent the powder from softening impacts against the tumbler, the powder is allowed to escape the tumbler at a given point in its rotational sequence and into a collector. Overall, the system is user independent and requires no oversight once initiated.
Description of the Prior Art
Devices have been disclosed in the prior art that relate to rock crushing assemblies. These include devices that have been patented and published in patent application publications. The following is a list of devices deemed most relevant to the present disclosure, which are herein described for the purposes of highlighting and differentiating the unique aspects of the present invention, and further highlighting the drawbacks existing in the prior art.
One such device in the prior art is U.S. Pat. No. 6,032,889 to Thrasher, which discloses a rocker crusher device that comprises a rotor surrounded by a container, wherein the rotor is mounted to a vertical shaft that is supported via bearings. The shaft is driven such that the rotor rotates within the container. Rocks are fed into the rotor and slung from ports in the rotor to an impact anvil. Steel balls are positioned within the device to crush the rocks as they are slung against the impact anvil. While sharing the use of steel pulverizing balls, the structure and operation of the Thrasher assembly diverges significantly from that of the present invention. The present invention utilizes a tumbler with faceted outer surfaces and an open interior, wherein the inner surfaces and a pulverizing media is used break down larger rocks into finer powder.
Another device is U.S. Pat. No. 6,123,279 to Stafford, which discloses a rock crusher assembly that utilizes a cone having hardened, tapering inserts therein to crush rocks by way of impact. Rocks are placed on the cone, which in turn travel down the side of the cone along a crushing surface and into a tapered area. The hardened inserts act as pick-axes to shatter the rock, wherein the cone is rotating and the inserts impact the rocks as they move down the crushing surface. This assembly is effective for crushing rocks; however its method of crushing and the construction of the assembly of Stafford diverges from that provided herein. The Stafford device uses a crushing surface with projections. The present invention relates to a tumbler apparatus and a crushing media placed within the tumbler to break down large rocks into fine powder over a period of operation.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,783,092 to Robson discloses a rotary impact rock crusher that is disposed at an angle and includes an adjustable table that can update the angle while in operation. The device comprises a chamber with a rotor that slings rocks within the housing. Within the chamber is an anvil for crushing the moving rocks upon impact therewith. The anvil has rectangular cavities to break up the rocks, and the angular position of the anvil can be adjusted while the device is spinning. The Robson device utilizes a stationary anvil within the chamber as an impact surface. The present invention contemplates a spinning housing that utilizes faceted surfaces and a pulverizing media comprising hardened balls or pellets as a means of pulverizing the rocks into a powder.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,360,174 to Persson discloses a means of measuring the volume of a grinding charge in a rotating drum of a drum mill. The drum mill includes inward bars with sensors that can detect the load placed thereon. The load on the bars is used to calculate the amount of grinding charge therein. While disclosing a drum with a grinding charge, the Persson device fails to contemplate the faceted surfaces of the present drum or the grinding media used therein. Furthermore, the present invention contemplates a means of dispensing small quantities of pulverized rock from the drum during operation, thereby eliminating any impact attenuation or damping that powder can provide within the tumbler during operation.
The present invention provides a rock crushing and a mineral pulverizing assembly that utilizes a faceted tumbler and a hardened pulverizing media within the tumbler to break down larger rocks into granular material. The tumbler rotates and the rocks impact the pulverizing media and the faceted interior surfaces of the tumbler. After a period of operation, the end result is a granular material that can be processed for retrieving precious mineral deposits therein. The granular material is allowed to escape the tumbler during operation, thereby preventing fine powder build-up therein and maintaining high energy impacts between the rocks, tumbler and the pulverizing media.
It is submitted that the present invention is substantially divergent in design elements from the prior art, and consequently it is clear that there is a need in the art for an improvement to existing rock pulverizing assemblies. The present invention offers a simple, yet elegant solution that can easily be maintained and used on a continual basis to reduce rocks into a fine powder for further mineral extraction processes. In this regard the instant invention substantially fulfills these needs.